Refrigerating apparatus.



W. COOPER. RERIGBRATING APPARTUS. APPLIOATloN FILED MM2?, w10.

1,080,540. Patented Dee. 9, 1913.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

l HUH I Il I1 II'IIII 'ffH': f 'Iullrlll y HWI' llllll! bsorbe f- Rectifier t 5g aNvENToR V M N W. COOPER.

REPRIGBRATING APARATUs.

- APPLIUTION FILED JAN.27,1910. v 1.080,540. Patented Dec. 9, 1913.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

FIG. 1a

l INVENTOR Q1 Ww@ WILLIAM COOEETA 0F WtLKINSBURG, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR TO GENERAL BE' FRIGERATING COMPANY, OF- IELITTSBU'RGH, PEINSYLVANIA, A CORPORATION UF WEST VIRGINIA.

REHMIGEMEING .tlllilItATUS.

`tipetitrisation of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec'. 9, 1913.

Application led January 537, 19l0. Serial No. 640,421.

To'all whom it may concern:

Be it known that l, WILLIAM Coornu, a resident of Wilkinsburgj, in the county of Allegheny and State o1 lennsylvania, have invented a new and useful improvement in Refrigerating Apparatus, of which the iollowing is a specification.

This invention relates to rct'rigerating,r Systems and more particularly to systems oi the absorption type.

The object or the invention is to produce a system of this kind which is more economical andwhich has a higher efficiency than and l show' diagrammatically a prior systems ol the saine type.

Generally stated, the invention depends for its higher efficiency on the relatively small amount of heat required to distil any gas from a very strong aqua solution oi such gas.-

lt is well known that an aqua solution of any gas when confined in a closed recoptacle exerts a pressure on the walls of the receptacle. The amount of this pressure depends upon two things '-thc strength ci'v the solution and the temperature. At any given strength of solution the pressure will hc higher as the temperature is higher and at any given temperature the pressure will bc .higher as the solution is made stronger. ln

order toel'ect the econon'ly sought it is therefore necessary to obtain a strong solution from which' to distil the gas used as the refrigerating agent. As the 'tcm-gnuuture of the solution is usually determinant by thc cooling water available and camini'. be lowered below a certain minimum which does not usually give the strength oi? solution do sired atthe pressure of the gas returning from the refrigerating apparatus, it is necessary to increase' the pressure oi the gas to get the strength of solution desired. i-lence meansare provided for compressing the gas coming from the expansion or evaporation devices and forcingl the same into the absorber to produce a very strong' aqua. solution from which the gas can be distilled with a relatively small amount of heat..

In the accompanying drawings,Figures 1 arrangement of apparatus-comprising my improved system.

In the drawing, l indicates an er mision coil or other suitable evapointing` dvice in which liquid ammonia is evaporated tu produce the refrigerating ei'cct. Ti is is shown located in an ice forming chamber ory recep In the connection 7 leading from the evaporating device 1 to the absorber is placed a suitable compressor 8 for compressing the ammonia gas and forcing the same into the absorber to produce a very strong aqua solution ol" nmn'ionia. This compressor may be of any suitable type but for purposes of economy I prefer a steam driven compressor, the steam engine being indicated at 9 with steam supply pipel() connected thereto and coming 'from a suitable boiler, and pipe ll connected to the exhaust thereof.

thc steam exhaust pipe ll leads to a suitable. distilling apparatus 'for providing thc distilled water from which ice is made. `l.1'eferably, a multi plc-effect distilling apparatus such as shown is use-d, the particular one shown securing Vfour distillations cach yieldinpt the saine amount ol water as the weight. ol'l initial charge ot steam. As illustrated, the exhaust steam pipe l1 is connected to a coil l2 in a water vessel 13. From the upper part ol this vessel 13 a steam pipe l-i leads to coil lo in vessel 1G, and from the upper cud of this, in turn, leads steam pipe 17 to coil 1S in vessel 19, and in turn .troni the upper end of this ves-A sel a. steam pipe 20 leads to a coil 21 in a vessel 29...

coil 15, and in being condensed generates in vessel 16 steam at a still lower pressure, say 50 pounds 'per square inch, which in turn is condensed iu coil 1S but `in being condensed generates steam, in. vessel i9 at,` say, 25

pounds per sanare inch, and again is Additional coils` and vesselsscan Y, be supplied by merely extending the ,-syir-` mcg 1,0@

l 'condensed in gco'il 21 producing l:steam at j sti11" iower. pressure, say atmospheric presq sure.-v A,The loW pressure steam from the last v unitf-'of thewater distilling apparatus is con- ,f f-duetled through pipe 24 to the heatingmcoil "gjofthef ammoniagenerator Li, and is condensedltherein and conducted bypipe to he, storage .tank 26 from which the pipe Si'dsto thefice making chamber or receptae211 g. i

Withthje em above described, it steam uicife'ntly high pressure is used to op ratei-the compressorv 8, then the exhaust am'will be suiiicient to distil all the Waerneeded for makingjice and'also for dis- .'t' ling'the ammonia lfrom the aqua solution flfiin the ammonia generator. Consequently, ,theA povver necessary to compress the low pressure gas as well as distil the Water Yfor 4ice makingis supplied by the expenditure of'very little energy, and Without the use oft co'olingcwater, since the ammonia generator A ,itself condenses the steam used in the water i distilling apparatus. The ammonia genera- 25, tor is the place Where the greatest portion. Tof the heat inthe original steam is used and this is where the greatest economy is eiieot- V ed. y Distillation of the Water is effected primarily at the expense of the pressure ot' the stealn and 'not lof its latent heat, the latte-r being utilizedl in the ammonia generator.

Between the absorber and 4ammonia generator and preferabi-y near the bottom thereoffis a Connection 27 provided `viith a 'valve g5 28' for :conducting the Weak a'qua solution from the generatoeto the absorber. The 'strong solution passes from the absorber 'to the generator through a'pipe 30 in which is .providedapunip 3l for forcing-the solution 40 intorthe generator.. l This pump also ,preferably issteamdriven being shown as driven by "team engine 32, the exhaust steam from ch'is addedto the exhaust steam from the ompressorL `tor the purpose or vdistillingj'ivater for ice making above described@ In the connection between this pumpan'd the generator is an interohanger or exchanger 33 for the weak and strong solutions, said connection being in the form of a double tube With the inner tube so arranged that thev urea-k Warm solution passes through the outertube from the generator to the absorber While the strong solution c from the absorber-to the generator passes 1 .55through the inner tube. The tivo soli ons v flowin contrary directions and in. this Way 44the strong solution isf-somewhat heated by i 'the Weak solution. y.

The'arnmonia gas distilled in generator 4t' 6o' passes through pipeBG ltoja-rectier 3T from From the condenser ythe liquid ammonia lpasses Ainto a storage lrece` jacle et@ and thence through piperel @the or 'evaporator-igt. e e..

which a pipe 88 leads to condenser 39.

expansion valve 42 of any well known construction. The rectifier and condenser are in the forms of large tubes through which the ammonia vapor passes and are both cooled. The cooling Water enters through pipe e3 in the lower part of the condenser, passes through the condenser as shown and is conducted by pipe est to pipe 4-5 Which ero tends through the rectifier and isthence conducted by pipe e-to the cooling coil 5 in the absorber 3. rlhe Waste Water escapes through pipe 47.

.in general the same as any absorption system with the exception of the-compression of the louT pressure ammonia gas before entering the absorber and the utilization oli the exhaust steam from'the .compressor and also of the ammonia pump, for distilling Water for ice making and for heating the ammonia generator.` As the strength of the aqua solution depends upon the pressure atV any given. temperature, it is only' a question of making the pressure high enough toget any strength of solution' desired. Preferably, the compressor engine 9 will be operated with steam at ,high pressure, say 300 -haust steam escaping from the same will still be at a' high pressure, :dn the Wate distiiling apparatus the tension orl pressure of the steam is the pririeipal feature utilized in distiiling the Water 1vWh-ile'the latent heat of the steam is practically all expended iny the ammonia generator. The solution in the absorber produced by the compression is .normal under ordinary operating` conditions, that is, much stronger than would be due to the pressurein the evaporator. in fact a solution is produced v'in which the refrige-ir-` Weight than the absorbing agent, that is, the Water. On account of such strong solution it requires only a relatively small amount of heat to distii the ammonia thereitroni. The exhaust steam coming from the Water distilling apparatus is ample for this purpose.y l'n fact tivo or more pounds of ammonia gas are distilled for each pound of steam condensed in Vth distilling apparatus.

but highly economicah What l claim is: i

i. lin an absorption refrigerating system, the combination. -of `an ammonia generator, an absorber connected" thereto to.` deliver aqua `:unmouia to said generator, a steam driven pump i'n'f'the connection between the a steam driven compressor inthe connection i.

between the Rexpaguslon device and the absorber `for compressing the anunonia` gas coming from thefexpanslon deiuce, 'Water distlhng apparatus connections-einem `very strong, much stronger than Would be absorber 'and generator-,an expansion device, l

The operation ofthe system described is pounds to the square inch, so that the exatingv agent, that is, the ammonia, is more by rEhe system as a vvh le is not only eiiicient ifea said steam compressor and saidv steam pump to said apparatus, whereby the exhaust steam from the compressor and pump heats ng the absorber and generator, an expansion device, and a em'npressor in the connection between the expansion deviee and the ebsorber for compressing the ammonia gas eenling from the expansion device and producing a strong aqua solution m the absorber.

3. In an absorption retrigerating system, thel combination of an. ammonia generator, an absorber connected thereto to deliver aque :uumonia to said generator, an expansion device, a steam driven eomljnessor in the connect ion betneen the expansion device and the absorber for compressing' the ammonia gas eenling from the expansion device and producing n strong aqua solution in the absorber, water distilling apparatus, and emmeetions whereby the exhaust steam from said compressor heats the water dlstllhng apparatus.

L I n an absorption retrigeratmg system,

the combination of an ammonia, generator,`

an absorber connected thereto t0 deliver aqua '.nnmonia 'to said generator, un expansion device, a steam driven compressor in the eonneetion between the expansion device and the absorber, water distilling appara,- tus, connections for conducting the 'exhaust steam Yfrom the compressor to said water (listilling apparatus, and connections forr eonduoting waste steam from the distillng apparatus to heating means for the ammonia generator.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand.

VILLIAM COOPER. Witnesses B. B. I-IINLS, M. J. ARNOLD. 

